


Coffee Machine Blues

by ToonLemon



Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: F/F, Mutual Pining, burnt hand with coffee trope, now we gotta have a bonding moment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-18 15:23:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16997541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToonLemon/pseuds/ToonLemon
Summary: Ryder's having trouble sleeping and gets a much needed pep talk





	Coffee Machine Blues

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this while i was still playing and couldn't read fics yet cuz of spoilers so  
> I made my own lol  
> I went and touched up a few things but overall it's still kinda the same so hopefully it's congruent enough it's been a minute since I've played now

Ryder was going to keel over.

At least that’s what Lexi told her.

Being the one and only doctor on a ship came with big responsibility, Ryder understood that. You can’t go into the medical field without learning to take the role as the nagging mother who makes you eat every vegetable on your plate, or makes sure you have enough layers on to look like a human marshmallow before going out in the cold. 

But if she didn’t stop giving her that worried, disapproving look every time she saw the Pathfinder pass by the medbay to keep herself busy during yet another restless sleep cycle in the kitchen, Ryder was convinced she’d throw herself out the airlock.

It wasn’t like she could help it. The Asari didn’t seem to buy Ryder’s “Alright I’ll find a new party trick.” line to brush off what SAM was forced to do in the archon’s ship. Hey If comedy was her coping mechanism then so be it. It made less problems for everyone else. The crew didn’t need to know their leader was having difficulty doing the biggest task her famous title came with.

Struggling to fill her dad’s shoes was not on her list of life goals.

There had to be some kind of stability on the ship. It was supposed to be a safe haven after coming back from a grueling mission or an exhausting diplomatic meeting. It being common knowledge that Ryder had recurring nightmares over the crushing sensation of her own heart stopping was definitely not something that gave a team hope for future missions.

Sighing, Ryder pulled herself out of her thoughts to pour another cup of coffee in the ship’s small kitchen area. Having the machine right next to her living quarters was a big mistake but how could the building crew have known they’d get a sleep deprived Pathfinder visiting it every 20 mins when the pot in their room was empty. She glared at the tasteless liquid like it was the coffee’s fault her brain had turned against her. 

“Glaring at the coffee machine isn’t going to make you feel better. Trust me I’ve tried.” 

The sudden voice caused Ryder to violently jerk. She hadn’t heard anyone walking down the hall. Unfortunately she’d been startled enough for the freshly poured coffee in her hand to decide it was a great time to practice gymnastics and back flip onto the hand who held it. With a pained hiss Ryder set down the traitorous drink and quickly wiped her hand off on her shirt.

Realizing she still didn’t know who walked in due to the distraction, Ryder readied herself to tell off Liam or Peebee or whoever decided to spook her so early. Or late. Whatever time it was.

The two had decided to start a “Who can scare Ryder the most” game when missions started to slow down and they probably wouldn’t still be doing it if they knew how little sleep she’d been getting recently but it’s not like she’s made that known (and has no plan to).

But now they were messing with her coffee. The one thing that actually helps her function for the time being. This was betrayal of the highest order. At least, it was for someone who practically couldn't move without it.

Ready to unleash her wrath Ryder turned towards the kitchen doorway. 

To see Vetra.

Definitely not who she’d expected.

“Oh Vetra! Sorry you kinda gave me a little spook, I wasn’t expecting anyone to be up right now.” Ryder chuckled nervously and absentmindedly rubbed her hand. 

She mentally chastised herself. Nice going Ryder you just embarrassed yourself yet again in front of the one teammate you’ve been sorta flirting with since she’d joined the team. That’s cool no biggie.

Ryder was so busy berating herself she hadn’t noticed the Turian walk closer. The feeling of an un-gloved claw pulled the pathfinder out of her mind-space. 

And pulled her physically. 

 

In her haste to chastise herself over letting Vetra scare her Ryder hadn’t realized the color of her hand reacting to the burn. 

After being dragged across the ship to the armory the Pathfinder was guided to a random container pulled away from the wall.

Vetra pulled a box down from the shelf and wheeled her desk chair over to Ryder, taking a seat in front of her. Wasting no time she got to work taking out a standard ointment and bandage wrap. Her hands moved with ease, like she’d done this a million times before. 

The pathfinder hesitated in speaking. Such an intense look from the Turian made her feel like she’d gotten caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

So she decided to study her caretaker instead. Vetra was stripped of her usual armor and wearing her civies. A loose black tank top exposed a good portion of her rough skin, giving Ryder a full view to the array of scars littering her body. 

“I can feel you staring ya know.” Vetra quipped.

Ryder snapped her focus elsewhere in embarrassment. It had been a while since someone other than a certified doctor patched her up like this. It was almost comforting if she looked over the embarrassing reason she was here in the first place. A small laugh escaped her lips at the thought.

That got Vetra’s attention once more as she’d halted her wrapping to raise an eyebrow plate at the human in front of her.”You’re not going into hysterics over some spilt coffee are you? I’d hate to have to tell Lexie this.” the Turian questioned with a hint of amusement.

Thankful Vetra was keeping the mood light, Ryder sighed dramatically. “I’d like to avoid another 2 hour lecture thank you.” 

Vetra finished wrapping her hand and stood up to put the box back where it belonged. “Well if you start pouring hot beverages on yourself often I might just have to join her.” Vetra replied, easily continuing the casual banter.

Chuckling the pathfinder stared down at her freshly bandaged hand with a look of fondness. 

A pestering voice broke the atmosphere.

_**Weak**_

It was brief but quickly soured her mood. You’d think dying and coming back to life would prove how strong a person was right? But it’d only given Ryder an even harder time at keeping her negative feelings from surfacing. She’d never liked bothering people with her problems in the first place. Now she had Lexi hovering over her whenever she was in medbay for any reason and Vetra taking care of a silly burn she’d gotten from stupidly spilling a hot beverage.

Her teammate must’ve caught onto Ryder’s train of thought because the Turian sat herself back into the chair she’d left in front of the injured Pathfinder. 

Crossing her arms Vetra leaned back before speaking. “I used to patch up Sid all the time when we were younger. She’d get reckless and fall down a hill or run into a wall. It’s funny when I look back on it but at the time any injury was too important to ignore.”

Ryder looked up in interest. She took any chance she could to learn more about her crew and an unprompted story time from Vetra was like getting a present you wanted but hadn’t asked for yet. 

Not wanting to interrupt but feeling a slight ache from her slouching position, Ryder relaxed her upper body against the crates behind her, urging Vetra to continue with an eager look.

The Turian looked down at her lap seeming to take a moment to recall the memories. “Because of all the odd jobs I took I got hurt pretty often. I had to learn how to patch myself up quickly ‘cuz there’s no way we could’ve afforded professional help and I certainly wasn’t going to ask Sid to do it.”

“One night I had come back home a complete mess.” A frown made its way to her face as she continued the story. 

“My job earlier that day was to climb into a dark duct no one else could fit in. Thing is nobody had realized there was heavy duty metal and glass scattered everywhere and still being young and living alone with limited nutrients my skin wasn’t as tough as it should’ve been. My plates caught some of it before i’d noticed but crawling back out did a number on me.” 

She shifted in her chair and continued. “Long story short Sid was worried over how long I’d been out and stayed up past her bedtime. She caught how shit I looked when I came home. I was in no shape to fix myself up so I ended up having to walk her through it.”

Vetra finally looked back up meeting Ryder’s intent stare. A bittersweet chuckle bubbled in the back of the Turian’s throat. “Point is it sucked. I never wanted my sister to have to experience something like that. But it had to happen. She needed to have some kind first aid smarts in case anything happened to me.” 

“And I needed to face the facts that I would have to get used to accepting help when I had no other options. That it wasn’t a problem to have someone to lean on at least a little if I was struggling.” she finished pointedly.

Well Shit.

Ryder cut their eye contact quickly, scratching the bandage on her hand with a pout. She should’ve figured someone would catch on eventually she’d just hoped it’d be later when she wasn’t relying on the help of a million tiny beans to get her through the day.

She accepted defeat. Vetra wasn’t going to let her get out of this. 

With a small sigh and tired smile she turned her attention back to the Turian in front of her. “So you know?”

Softening her gaze, Vetra leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees. “I know you’ve been visiting the cargo bay every sleep cycle since our mission on the Archon’s ship. You forget I pretty much live in the armory and this ship echos like hell when everyone’s asleep. I also know when you’re not here you’re in the kitchen. I wouldn’t be surprised if coffee runs through your veins at this point.”

Yikes. 

Apparently she wasn’t as sneaky as she thought.

Groaning Ryder hung her head in shame. She’d officially failed as a leader. Her father would’ve handled this so much better, there was no way she was cut out for this. She should just make Cora Pathfinder and go back into cryo. Everyone knew she deserved it a thousand times more.

A weight on her shoulder broke Ryder out of her stupor, inclining her to look up at Vetra. She was met with glistening green eyes full of understanding and couldn’t help but let her shoulders relax a smidgen. 

“You're Not alone here Ryder. We’re a team. You may be a Pathfinder but that doesn’t mean you’re invincible.” she spoke in a reassuring tone, words laced with experience.

It still stung a little. No one liked admitting they could be hurt. But, it gave Ryder some comfort knowing she really wasn’t expected to be invincible. At least not to her team.

At least not to Vetra.

Speaking of, Vetra’s hand hadn’t moved from it’s place on Ryder’s shoulder and if she was being honest, it was one of the only things keeping her grounded at that moment. 

Giving a tired smirk Ryder tilted her head “This has been a very eye opening session doctor. How much do I owe you?” it was her specialty to never go without a joke for too long. Serious talks made her uncomfortable. 

She’d been vulnerable enough for one night. 

Day. 

What ever.

Vetra rolled her eyes and rustled Ryder’s hair. “Ever the comedian. How about you get a couple hours of sleep and we’ll call it even.”

Laughing lightly at Vetra’s playful gesture Ryder batted the Turian’s hand playfully. “Yeah yeah ok. You’re starting to sound like Lexi.” she shot back.

“I’ll start giving her a run for her position if you keep spilling coffee while she’s off duty.” Vetra retaliated, crossing her arms with a smirk.

Ryder stuck out her tongue in defiance. Not really mature but she could care less. It wasn’t like this was some big important meeting with the council. Just her and Vetra.

She’d always felt her walls come down around her. It was pretty shocking how easily the Turian could break her guard down. Without the occasional nerves from other less convenient feelings, joking around and talking with Vetra was relaxing. 

It was getting late though.

At least it felt like it.

A large yawn escaped Ryder’s mouth as she stood from her makeshift crate chair to make her leave. 

The Pathfinder stopped at the armory’s doorway in thought, keeping her back to her teammate, she glanced behind her with a grateful smile. “Thanks for pep-talk Vet. I really appreciate it.”

Vetra returned the sentiment immediately. “You gotta have someone around to knock some sense into you every once and awhile.”

After a longer than necessary stare Ryder strolled back to her room, a welcome fatigue starting to finally settle in her bones. A small squeak greeted her as the door slid open and she reached to give her hamster a few pets before continuing to her bed. 

It looked more inviting than it had in what felt like a million years. 

Shimming her way in between the covers Ryder reached for a small hidden stuffie, one of the few things she’d brought with her from the milky way, and curled up into a comfortable position.

It was absolutely the best sleep she’d had in weeks. And if her dreams were filled with intense orbs of green and the rough yet gentle touch of hands well,

No one had to know that.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed my need for bonding and how much of a crush I had on Vetra lol


End file.
